Insertable Semi-flexible Shelf Within A Compartment

ABSTRACT

An insertable, semi-flexible shelf apparatus suspended and attached in a horizontal relationship within a compartment and anchored to anchor elements bonded to the inside wall surface of a portable cooler or drop-in horizontal freezer or portable storage bin container for better visibility, access, organization, and protection of food and food containers; fishing bait; and other items to retain and protect these items from damage due to wetness, frost and combination with other items.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

None

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an insertable, attachable andsemi-flexible shelf to store items securely within a compartment such asportable coolers, top opening chest freezers, or portable storagecontainers.

2. Description of the Prior Art

With the advent and growth of outdoor recreation in modern society andadded leisure time, the popularity of portable cooled storagecompartment devices, otherwise known as portable or compact coolers orice chests, has increased. The quality of the outdoor recreationalexperience is often enhanced by easy access to foodstuffs and beverages.To minimize deterioration in foodstuffs and add to the attraction ofbeverages, it is important that outdoor recreation enthusiasts haveaccess to cold storage. Coolers or ice chests are portable storagecompartments which can receive blocks or cubes of ice to maintaincooling of the beverages and foodstuffs stored within during theoutings.

The vast majority of these cooler devices have the shortcoming that thefoodstuffs can only be kept cold by combining them with the ice placedwithin the cooler. Typically, portable coolers have just one compartmentin which to place both the ice and the foodstuffs or beverages. After arelatively short period of time of usage and storage in outdoorenvironments, this ice begins to melt causing water to begin formingwithin the cooler compartment. This melting effect tends to be moreprevalent during outdoor recreation as these coolers are typically usedin long outdoor trips in the summer and generally warmer weather. Theconstant opening of the cooler top or opening only increases thisprocess since the cold air is released and the ice is exposed to thewarmer outside air. The melting of the ice often has damaging andruinous effects on the foodstuffs and creates an untidy situation withinthe cooler. Food and food packages and containers stored within thecooler can easily get wet from the melting of the ice inside of thecooler. Pre-packaged food containers often use cardboard and othermaterials which are not impervious to water and can result in thecontents being soaked in water. Outdoor enthusiasts often use plasticwrap material, paper bags and sandwich bags to wrap up sandwiches andother foods. These covering materials can easily get wet soaking thefoods inside, or they can open or unravel resulting in wet and ruinedfoodstuffs.

Portable coolers are also routinely used by fishermen to store fishingbait and keep it cold during fishing trips. These trips are usually ofan extended duration in which the bait must be kept cold to avoidspoilage. Bait in a cooler is typically kept stored in same compartmentas the loose ice and subject to the same hazards of getting wet anddamaged from water from the melting ice as foodstuffs and foods incontainers.

Portable coolers are typically designed to have a large open compartmentwithout any shelves or sub-compartments or other means of segregatingitems. Due to this typical design, the items within portable coolers canalso be difficult to locate and access. This is even more difficult dueto the ice covering items. The user frequently has to reach into ice tofind and retrieve an item. Once the ice melts, the user has to reachinto water to find and retrieve items. It is these problems which areaddressed by the present invention.

It has already been recognized that there is a need for the separationof certain food stuffs from the ice used in portable cooling devicecompartments. It is also known there is a need for better organizationof items stored within coolers to allow for better viewing, separationof items and access to items. Examples of known devices in this areainclude designs of insertable compartments, trays, racks, chambers, andgrids to be placed within portable coolers to separate ice andfoodstuffs. Examples of such known devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat.Nos. 4,307,581 to Reid, 4,424,687 to Morgan, 4,515,421 to Steffes,4,551,988 to Petrantoni, 4,565,074 to Morgan, 4,916,923 to Adams,5,052,184 to Jarvis, 5,052,185 to Spahr, 5,437,165 to White, 5,605,056to Brown, 5,845,515 to Nelson, 6,050,663 to Schoellmann, and 6,105,654to Martel. Typically, these devices consist of internal compartments,chambers, trays and racks which are inserted into compartments. Thesedevices are not built-in to the cooler and are typically removable andadjustable, yet lack the flexibility, functionality and lightness ofmaterial of the insertable and semi-flexible shelf apparatus.

Other examples of known prior art include portable coolers designed withmany of the above features built-in to the cooler. Examples of suchknown devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,524,761 to Wayman,5,671,611 to Quigley, 5,816,433 to Higgins, 6,349,559 to Hasanovic,6,782,711 to Abfalter, and 6,966,450 to Askew. These devices are alldesigned to separate ice from foodstuffs, but they are all lacking insome manner, primarily that they are not removable, flexible andadjustable in any manner. They also do not make as much use of thelimited space within the cooler as compared to the insertablesemi-flexible shelf apparatus. These devices also cannot be applied toexisting coolers.

It has also been recognized that there is a need to have fishing baitused for fishing activities kept cooled and stored within portablecoolers and to keep this bait separated from the ice and the waterresulting from melted ice. Examples of such known devices include U.S.Pat. Nos. 5,605,056 to Brown and Starling, 5,931,019 to White, andD601,654 to Sykes. These devices employ solid trays to be placed withinthe cooler compartments with holes to provide cold air to keep the baitcold. However, these trays are not flexible, do not allow as much coldair penetration and cannot be seen through as compared to the insertablesemi-flexible shelf apparatus.

It would be particularly useful to develop a device that can be placedinside of portable coolers that will allow for separation of food itemsand fishing bait from the ice needed to keep these items cool. Thisdevice should help to keep the foodstuffs and bait dry from the meltingice and water, which forms in the cooler compartment. It should alsoprovide for easy access to these items and keep them separated from theice or cooling materials to make them easier to find and retrieve. Itshould be lightweight so that it doesn't affect the user's ability tocarry the portable cooler for any duration. Furthermore, it would beuseful for this device to be flexible and adjustable within the coolerso that the user has the most variation in placement of the stored itemsas they determine.

Additionally, with the advent of food storage, especially long-termstorage of perishable food items, the popularity of refrigerated storagecompartments, or freezers, has increased. These units allow for thelonger term storage of foods such as meats, vegetables, and otherfoodstuffs which would perish if stored for long periods in arefrigerator. Often these units are arranged in a top down storageconfiguration where foods are stored on top of each other horizontally.These units are known as top opening chest freezers or drop-in freezers.Some refrigerators in commercial settings and in boats have this topopening configuration as well.

The top opening chest freezer or refrigerator is opened by raising thetop door and reaching in and down to place or remove food items.Frequent door openings to either put objects inside, take them out, ormerely to view and find the items inside prior to taking any actioncauses a major loss of coldness inside the freezer causing food items tobe exposed to higher temperatures causing loss of coldness. Thiscondition can also lead to increased energy expenditure and higherenergy costs as the generator units of freezers have to activate on amore frequent basis to maintain freezing temperatures. This samecondition of loss of cold air from frequent door openings is also wellknown to be a problem facing users of household refrigerators.Foodstuffs within these drop-in freezers are also often stacked or piledvertically with limited ability to organize or find certain foods. Thiscan make it difficult to find desired objects or even to be able to seewhat is inside the freezer. Thus, users have to keep pulling out objectsto find the ones they want, all the while losing precious cold air fromthe freezer, resulting in higher energy usage.

It has already been recognized that there is a need for betterorganization of storage of items within freezers and refrigerators inmany different settings to improve the viewing, locating and retrievalof food items. Examples of known devices in this area include racks andtrays within freezers to enable organization and placement of objects.Examples of such known devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,083,836to Bussemer, and 4,138,175 to Tattershall. These devices are typicallymade of metal or solid material and inserted within the freezer cabinet.They do not have the flexibility and ease of use of the insertable,semi-flexible shelf apparatus.

It would be particularly useful to develop a device that would be ableto retain items within a refrigerated or frozen cabinet such as withhousehold top chest or drop-in freezers or refrigerators to enablebetter access to some items and keep certain items such as foodstuffsand food containers separate and easy to view, find, and access to placeor remove as needed. The more frequently a freezer door or cooler coveris opened, the greater the loss of cold air. This leads to highertemperatures in the internal storage area, which results in higherenergy use required to maintain adequate coldness.

Additionally, in recent years, the popularity of portable storagedevices, such as plastic, stackable storage bin containers, has becomemore widespread. These devices are frequently used by people who havelimited storage capabilities in their homes, and by people whofrequently need to move or haul items from one place to another. Theseunits typically take the shape of large rectangular bins, with a widthand depth of a few feet, providing for substantial storage capabilitywhile still allowing easy portability by one person in transit. As withportable coolers or drop-in freezers, the functional limitation of thesecontainers primarily involves the lack of ability to separate andsegregate items for effective viewing, storage and retrieval of items.Typically within these containers, items are loose and have a tendencyto become mixed together, trapped under and within other objects, andbecome difficult to locate and retrieve. This becomes more pronouncedwhen it comes to small or more valuable items which can be even harderto find and more difficult to replace. Other items that are more fragileand breakable can be protected from possible damage from excessivemovement within or by contact with other materials within thecompartment. This tendency to lose items within compartments isincreased by the frequency of movement since these units are designed tobe portable. An attachable, insertable and flexible shelf allows forretention, segregation, and easy viewing and retrieval of certainobjects and items within these types of containers.

It has already been recognized that there is a need for improving theorganization of storage of items within portable storage containers.Examples of known devices in this area include storage compartments withcertain tray and shelf components built-in. Examples of such knowndevices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,011,013 to Meisner, 5,123,564to Hobson, and 6,874,650 to Welsh. These devices are compartments thathave some tray and shelf features built-in, but they are not separateinsertable or attachable trays that can be used with the majority ofexisting storage containers.

It would be particularly useful to develop a device that would be ableto retain items within a portable storage compartment to enable betterviewing of and access to certain loose items, especially items that aresmall, fragile, breakable, and more valuable. It would be additionallyuseful if this device was constructed of lightweight flexible materialand could be easily insertable and attachable within portable storagecontainers and also easily removable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The preferred embodiment of the present invention includes an insertablesemi-flexible shelf to be deployed inside of a portable cooler, freezercompartment, or portable storage compartment and secured to the insidewalls of the compartment. The shelf is attachable and removable anddesigned to hold items securely and separately in order to make for easyaccess and to prevent the items from combining with other items,including water or ice.

The shelf is constructed primarily of thin and lightweight flexiblematerial, such as nylon mesh, and is not rigid. This flexibility allowsit to adjust to objects being stored both within it and underneath itwithin the compartment. The shelf is designed to be securely attached tothe compartment and to hold items of sufficient weight, such asfoodstuffs, fishing bait, and assorted loose objects, which need to beseparated from the rest of the items within the compartment. The shelfis also designed to be easily removable from the compartment by theuser. The shelf is designed to cover the majority of the compartmentleaving an opening through which a user may easily place and removeitems underneath in the main body of the compartment. The shelf has aretaining wall on the side bordering the opening to keep the itemsplaced on it from falling into the main body of the compartment. It alsohas a partition, which can be attached or removed as desired by the userto separate the shelf into two compartments.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent fromthe following detailed description, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the featuresof the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top view of the main body of the shelf surface (Panel A) andthe retaining wall (Panel B) depicting the shelf to be inserted anddeployed within a compartment.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged top view depicting the means of attachment of theshelf to the inside of the compartment.

FIG. 3 depicts the entire shelf apparatus installed in its intendedlocation within a compartment, without a center partition.

FIG. 4 is a top view of the main body of the shelf surface (Panel A) andthe retaining wall (Panel B) with the built-in shelf flaps removed, soas to be used with the separate attachable flaps to make up for thevariability of compartment openings.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the separate attachable flap to be used tomake up for the variability of compartment opening sizes.

FIG. 6 is a cross-section side view of the separate attachable flaplooking down its horizontal plane.

FIG. 7 is an enhanced side view of the shelf body attached to theseparate attachable flap horizontally and the flap attached to theinside compartment wall vertically.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged side view of the partition (or Panel C) of theshelf.

FIG. 9 depicts the entire shelf apparatus, including the centerpartition, installed in its intended location within a compartment.

FIG. 10 is a depiction of the approximate location of the embedded staysof the retaining wall and partition of the shelf in its installedposition inside the container.

FIG. 11 is an enhanced cutaway view of the stay as embedded within thetop border of the retaining wall and partition of the shelf apparatus.

FIG. 12 depicts the entire shelf apparatus installed within acompartment covering the entire opening of the compartment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

An insertable, semi-flexible attachable and removable shelf designed tofit inside of a drop-down compartment such as a portable cooler or icechest, drop-in freezer or portable storage bin. The shelf is made ofnylon mesh material generally surrounded by a nylon border. Shelf willserve to keep items residing on it separated from the main body of thecompartment for easy viewing and access. The shelf also serves toprotect items from other items in the compartment, such as ice or waterfrom melted ice within a portable cooler or freezer. A partition runningthe horizontal length of the shelf will also serve to give the user somefurther separation of items stored on the shelf. The nylon meshconstruction will serve to allow air flow to items on the shelf so asnot to impede cool air circulation for items stored on the shelf withinportable coolers or freezers. This shelf is supported and suspendedinside the compartment with fastener elements in the form of a hook andloop system described herein.

In storage bin use, the shelf will serve to keep smaller, breakable,fragile, and more valuable items separated and protected, free of thegeneral storage below in the main compartment.

FIG. 1 represents the main body and horizontal surface of the shelf andalso the retaining wall of the shelf invention. Two mesh panels, A andB, are fastened together by seam 7, which is stitched into the fabric soas to separate the two mesh panels. In use, Panel B is positioned in avertical fashion perpendicular to Panel A and serves as a retaining wallof the device on the sole side of the shelf not attached to thecompartment. The retaining wall is an integral part of the shelf andserves to block the items held within the shelf from falling into themain body of the compartment. Seam 7 serves as a virtual joint or hingebetween the two mesh panels.

Border 5 is sewn into the entire perimeter of the outside of the nylonmesh netting material 6 of the shelf body.

Item 9 is a flap strip, which serves as a mounted fastening element,which is separated by seam 10, and has loop material sewn into itsbackside. It is made of the same nylon mesh material as the border 5,however, it is void of any mesh material on its interior. This allowsfor the flexibility of item 9, which in use is positioned approximately90 degrees to the body of the shelf vertically. The loop material on thebackside of item 9 is ultimately fastened to another strip of adhesivehook material running the length of item 9 that is adhered to the insidewall of the compartment. This strip is positioned below the top openingon the inside wall of the compartment and above the body of the shelf asto allow the shelf to hang in this hook and loop relationship. Thisserves as anchoring for the shelf on the opposite side from theretaining wall, Panel B.

Item 8 of FIG. 1 is a strip of hook material, which serves as a fastenerelement sewn into the midline of the shelf device and functions as theanchoring mechanism of the shelf partition, shown in FIG. 8. Thepartition is an attachable and removable partition separating the shelfinto two sections along its horizontal plane for separation of itemsstored on the device. It runs the raised vertical distance of Panel Band the horizontal length of Panel A to the limits of the border 5.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view looking down the length of a side of theshelf and shows how the shelf would affix to the wall of a compartment.It depicts built-in flap strip item 9 as a fastener element at the pointwhere it would attach to the wall of the compartment. It also shows howthe flap strip of item 9 of FIG. 1 attaches to the wall of thecompartment. Item 14 is the hook material adhered to the wall of thecompartment and has fastening elements in the form of loop material 11fastened to it, which is sewn into the backside of item 9. Item 9 is abuilt-in flap strip that is part of the body of the shelf and is sewninto the border 5. Item 5 is the border of the shelf and item 6 is themesh material, which makes up the body of the shelf.

FIG. 3 is a depiction of the shelf in the preferred embodiment, designedto fit precise and exact dimensions of a compartment. This embodimentwould be most suited for use in compartments where exact dimensions areknown and it can be constructed to fit these dimensions. Item 9 in FIG.3 is the flexible flap strip sewn into the shelf border and has loopmaterial sewn into its backside running its entire length, which willmarry to fastener elements in the form of hook material adhered to thecompartment walls.

FIG. 4 is similar to FIG. 1 in that it represents the main body andhorizontal surface of the shelf and also the retaining wall of the shelfinvention, however it does not include the built-in flap strips alongthe length of the shelf. This embodiment is to be used with the separateattachable flaps (of which one is shown in FIG. 5) to be attached alongthe length of the shelf for use in attaching the shelf to fit incompartments with varying opening dimensions.

FIG. 5 depicts the separate attachable flap used to make up for thevariability of the dimensions of various compartments to allow forinstallation of the shelf in them. It is a separate rectangular piece ofnylon mesh 6, made of the same material as the body of the shelf and hashook material 12 sewn onto one side of its entire horizontal edge and onthe opposite side has loop material 11 sewn into its entire horizontaledge. Separate flap will be used to bridge the distance between the edgeof the shelf length and the inside compartment walls where there is anabsence of item 9, along the distances designated C and D in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 shows the separate attachable flap from a cross-section side viewlooking down its horizontal plane. Hook material 12 is shown facingdownward and loop material 11 shown facing upward. Both are sewn intothe mesh material 6 of the shelf.

FIG. 7 shows how the shelf is affixed within the compartment using theseparate attachable flap and is attached to the inside wall of thecompartment. Hook material 12, sewn into mesh material of the flap, ismarried to loop material 13 which is sewn into backside of the border 5which surrounds mesh material 6 of the device. On the adjacent side ofthe flap, the loop material 11, sewn into the mesh material 6 of theflap, marries to the strip of adhesive hook material 14 that is adheredto the wall of the compartment.

In FIG. 8, the partition (or Panel C), is made of the same nylon meshmaterial 6 as the shelf body and bordered on all sides by the same nylonmaterial as the shelf border 5. Item 9 has loop material sewn into itsbackside. The vertical edge of one side of item 9 will fasten to thevertical distance D of the hook strip 8 mounted to Panel B (of FIG. 1).The opposite side of the flap strip of item 9 will marry to the strip ofadhesive hook material fastened to the inside wall of the compartmentrunning the vertical distance of FIG. 3 which is the same distance D inFIG. 1. The bottom backside hook material of item 9 will marry to theloop material of hook strip 8, FIG. 1, from seam 7 to seam 10.

FIG. 9 shows the shelf with panel C, the partition, in its intendedposition installed within a compartment. The partition allows for itemsto be separated from each other within the shelf itself.

In order to give this device a bit more rigidity, plastic stays are sewninto various places. Stays are sewn into the entire length of thepartition's (Panel C) bottom and top edges. The stays are sewn into thematerial of the border 5 on its interior. Thus, the stays are embeddedand hidden. This gives the device added strength and rigidity along itslength running parallel to the walls of the compartment runninglengthwise. Two more stays are sewn into the width of the device on thetop and bottom borders of the retaining wall, or panel B. Theseenhancements give it added strength and rigidity along its width.

FIG. 10 shows the location of the stays 15 and their approximatelocations when embedded in the device as installed within a compartment.In this FIG. 10, the device has been erased leaving only the stays fortheir proper location in regards to the compartment.

FIG. 11 is an enhanced cutaway view of the shelf border that shows thestay 15 embedded in the border of the device shown by the dotted lines.

FIG. 12 depicts the shelf covering the entire length and width of thecompartment, rendering the retaining wall or any vertical barrierunnecessary. This embodiment would need a means of access and in FIG. 12an example is item 16, which is a zipper.

It would become apparent to anyone skilled in the art to make thisdevice out of any material that would solve the aforementioned issues.It could be constructed of a more rigid material such as wood, hardplastics such as Plexiglass®, an acrylic material, manufactured byvarious manufacturers, a registered trademark of Arkema FranceCorporation, Colombes, France. It could also be made of a more flexiblematerial such as vinyl or plastic.

Furthermore, one might choose to fasten the device to the compartmentusing such fasteners as snaps, screws, or gluing the device directly tothe compartment.

One might even choose to make a device void of partitions or anycompartmentalization or even add more vertical panel partitions to makemore compartments. One might choose to fasten the partition divider tothe shelf by other means such as snaps, hooks, latches, etc. One mayalso wish to make the partition permanently installed by the use ofadhesive, sealant, or by sewing it to the shelf and the retaining wall.Anyone skilled in the art might even choose to make the shelf'sretaining wall facing the open end of the compartment, Panel B, aremovable partition or wall. A lid to fit on top and enclose the shelfmight even be deployed so as to keep the items from falling out shouldthe compartment topple over.

One might even choose to make a device with some means of accessprovided in the shelf body itself to be able to reach down through theshelf into the lower compartment below, such as a zipper running thelength of the shelf at its midpoint. This access could be also providedby other means such as snaps, hooks, latches, etc. One may also wish tomake the shelf body cover the entire length and width of the compartmentto provide more storage space on the shelf, attaching to the entireperimeter of the inside compartment walls.

We have chosen to use the hook-and-loop material attachment system so asto give the device a removable and easy to stow benefit. Being able toeasily remove the shelf will aid in the cleaning, loading, or emptyingof any compartment. Once removed, the only remaining pieces would be theadhesive strips of hook material that had been adhered to the walls ofthe compartment.

It will be appreciated that the nylon mesh material, the main body ofthe shelf (Panel A), the retaining wall (Panel B), the partition (PanelC), the flap attachments, and strips of adhesive hook-and-loop materialof the present invention may be manufactured and packaged together fordistribution, for instance, separately in retail stores or includedwithin portable coolers, drop-in freezers, and portable storage bincontainers to be purchased. The device will be provided in various sizesto fit various containers.

For shelf devices not pre-installed within a compartment, a user maythen purchase the package which may also include an adhesive or bond, orin some instance, may include the strip of adhesive-backed hook-and-loopmaterial fabricated with a adhesive back side thereof and covered by apeel off cover strip.

The user will purchase the shelf device of a size which maycomplementally fit the access opening or openings of his or her portablecooler, freezer, or storage compartment and can readily install thedevice by peeling the cover strip off the backing off the strips ofadhesive-backed hook material and adhering the respective strips to theinside walls of the portable cooler, freezer, or compartment in spacedrelationship around the opening.

It will be appreciated that the user has the option of, prior toinstallation, sizing up the arrangement by placing the shelf temporarilywithin the compartment opening and positioning the respective flapattachments in the approximate intended locations to determine wherethese flaps will need to be adjusted and secured by means of the stripsof adhesive-backed loop material to secure a tensioned condition for theshelf.

The manner of installing the current embodiment is for the user to firstunpeel the plastic backing off the strips of adhesive-backed loopmaterial supplied with the embodiment and then apply these strips to theinside walls of the compartment. These strips would need to be mountedto the internal sides of the compartment so that the flaps could thensecure the shelf in place over the top of the compartment. Once thesestrips are secured, the user would then attach the flaps, if necessary,by means of securing the hook and loop material on the flaps to the hookand loop material on the adhesive strips. Once secure, the user wouldattach the shelf to the flaps and then adjust flaps as needed toproperly fit the desired compartment.

The user would then raise the retaining wall at the edge of the shelfand attach the hook material of the wall to the loop material attachedto the inside walls of the compartment. Finally, the user would attachthe partition horizontally along the top surface of the shelf, securingit to the shelf by means of the hook-and-loop material mounted to boththe partition and the top of the shelf. The partition is then alsoattached to the inside of the compartment wall and the midpoint of theretaining wall.

Once installed, the user would then only need to place items on theshelf or take items off to use it. If not pre-attached to the horizontalmidpoint of the shelf, the user could attach the partition by mountingthe hook material on the flap on the lower section of the partition tothe loop material of the body of the shelf along its horizontalmidpoint. To finish the installation of the partition, the user wouldattach the hook material on the edge of the partition to the loopmaterial on the midpoint of the raised retaining wall. The user can thenput different types of items in either of the two createdsub-compartments within the shelf. The user could then choose to removethe partition, which separates the shelf horizontally into two equalsub-compartments by grabbing it at either end and pulling it to detachit from the hook-and-loop material. The user can maneuver items aroundthe shelf by placing items below the shelf in the base of thecompartment. The user can choose to completely remove the shelf in orderto place larger objects within the compartment, to clean the shelf, orto clean the entire compartment, by simply detaching the loop materialaffixed to the shelf and its flaps from the hook material affixed to theinside walls of the compartment.

Advantages

From the foregoing it will be appreciated that the shelf of the presentinvention provides for easy, convenient and inexpensive installation. Itis positively secured in place by hook-and-loop attachments adhered tothe inside vertical walls of the compartment by adhesive strips topositively secure the shelf in place against dislodgement. The strengthof the attachment by using industrial quality hook-and-loop materialwill also prevent dislodgement by the weight of any items stored on topof the shelf in the compartment formed by the shelf in normal usage,including movement or transportation. Another advantage of thishook-and-loop attachment is that by incorporating its use in the design,the shelf can be easily detached by the user and then stowed within orwithout the compartment while not significantly reducing storagecapability of the compartment.

Further, the use of the nylon mesh material for the shelf allows forcold air to pass through the material since the mesh material is porousand not solid, such as occurs with plastic alternatives. Thus,foodstuffs and fishing bait placed on and within the shelf can remainadequately cooled when used in a cooler or drop-in freezer. A solid trayor shelf within a cooler or freezer would cause cold air flow to beblocked. The nylon mesh also allows for viewing of the items storedbelow the shelf within the cabinet. Other similar shelf or tray unitsare often solid and the user has to lift them out to see into thecompartment below.

In addition, the nylon mesh is beneficial in that it is flexible, unlikesolid trays, and items may be placed all around and beneath it. Theflexible mesh material of the shelf has some give, allowing items toslightly alter the shelf's horizontal plane and raise it while notelevating the shelf to the point of impeding the closing of thecompartment. Another benefit to the shelf being constructed of meshmaterial and flexible, is that by not being solid, it will not break orcrack under pressure or applied force. This nylon mesh material alsoprovides a benefit in that it is lightweight so that it does not addsignificant weight to portable compartments.

Furthermore, it will be appreciated that the insertable shelf of thepresent invention provides for the utility of storing food items orfishing bait within a portable cooler or drop-in style freezer withoutthese foodstuffs being ruined by getting wet or overly frozen by fallinginto the main body of the compartment. Ice within portable coolers meltsand the foodstuffs can often get wet and soggy if the packaging orcontainer material is not waterproof and uses material such as cardstockor paper products. Furthermore, if the opening of the food packaging isbreached, the foodstuffs may be exposed to the melting ice water. In afreezer, foodstuffs may be exposed to ice and become overly frozen ifthe packaging has an opening or is made of non-waterproof material.

Another advantage of the shelf device is that by providingsub-compartments above and partitioned from the rest of the chamber, itallows a user to more easily find certain items so that the user doesnot have to search the entire contents to find these items, whether inice, water, under other foodstuffs, or any other items beings stored.The partition allows the user to separate multiple items from the mainbody of the compartment and each other. This advantage applies to usagein portable coolers, freezers, and storage containers. Additionally, byshortening the amount of time required to find certain items, this willallow for shorter durations of openings for portable coolers orfreezers, lessening the amount of cold air escaping. Thus, in theexample of coolers, the ice will be able to cool the foodstuffs insidefor a longer duration. These coolers are often used during warmer timesof the year for outdoor recreation and enjoyment, therefore frequentopening of the cooler cover causes the ice to melt faster than itnormally would. In freezer units, saving the amount of time the unit isopened would equate to lower energy costs to generate sufficient coldair to freeze the items.

The inclusion of attachment flaps between the shelf and the compartmentallows for adjustment to fit many different sizes and shapes of units,so that the shelf can fit more snugly and adequately cover the area andprevent objects from falling. The flaps also allow the shelf to beplaced in multiple coolers or freezers without being permanently affixedto one single particular unit.

CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE

Thus the reader will see that at least one embodiment of the deviceprovides an easy-to-use yet effective means of storing items in aflexible shelf, keeping them dry, separate and easily available forviewing, access and use. While the above description contains manyspecificities, these should not be construed as limitations on thescope, but rather as an exemplification of one preferred embodimentthereof. Many other variations are possible. For example, the nylon meshof the shelf body could be constructed of other materials, such asplastic sheeting, acrylic sheeting, vinyl, other nylon, etc. each havingvarious abilities to act as a compartment shelf.

The retaining wall of the shelf could be constructed of other materials,such as plastic sheeting, acrylic sheeting, vinyl, etc., each havingability to act as a retaining wall and keep items from falling off theshelf.

The partition, mounted to the shelf, could be constructed of othermaterials, such as plastic sheeting, acrylic sheeting, vinyl, etc., eachhaving various abilities to act as an upright partition and separateitems on and within the shelf.

The fastener elements of hook-and-loop material and means of attachingthe various components of the shelf, retaining wall, partition, flapsand the compartment interior could be replaced with other fasteningdevices, such as adhesives, button snap, plastic adhesive hooks, ties,screws, etc. each having means to attach to the components and thecompartment.

The borders of the shelf, the retaining wall and partition could beconstructed of other materials, such as plastic, acrylic, rayon, or ropematerial sufficiently strong enough to secure the shelf and theattachments to the compartment.

Both the built-in flap strips and the separate attachable flaps could beconstructed of vinyl, plastic, rubber, or other such material that wouldprovide sufficient strength to secure the shelf to the compartment andbe able to harbor fastener devices capable of attaching to both thefastening elements mounted on both the compartment and the shelf.

Thus the scope of the embodiment should be determined by the appendedclaims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.

1. An insertable and semi-flexible shelf and retaining apparatusinstalled within a compartment for separating, organizing, retaining,and protecting items from mixing with other materials within saidcompartment and comprising: (a) a rectangular shelf body configured tobe deployed and attached in a horizontal fashion within a compartmentcovering a predetermined section of the compartment space and mountedbelow the opening; (b) an upright retaining wall formed by raising aportion of said shelf body, forming a barrier on the open edge of thehorizontal edge of top surface of said shelf, and attached to theadjacent inside wall sides of said compartment to keep items fromfalling off of or out of said shelf; (c) a parametrical border attachedon the edges of said shelf incorporating mounted fastening elements forattachment to other fastening elements to be affixed to the internalsides of said compartment and said retaining wall; (d) fastener elementsfor mounting said shelf to the inside of said compartment and includingrespective anchor elements to be affixed by bonding to the inside ofsaid compartment running the length and width on three sides of saidcompartment perimeter for attachment to said border of said shelf body.2. The insertable shelf and retaining apparatus of claim 1 wherein: saidshelf body and border are constructed of nylon mesh material.
 3. Theinsertable shelf and retaining apparatus of claim 1 wherein: said shelfbody and border are constructed of plastic material.
 4. The insertableshelf and retaining apparatus of claim 1 wherein: said fastener elementsattached to said shelf border are constructed of hook and loop material;and said fastener elements adhered to the inside walls of saidcompartment are constructed of hook and loop material.
 5. The insertableshelf and retaining apparatus of claim 1 wherein: said fastener elementsattached to said shelf border are constructed of plastic latchconnectors; and said fastener elements mounted to the inside walls ofsaid compartment are constructed of plastic latch connectors.
 6. Theinsertable shelf and retaining apparatus of claim 1 wherein: saidfastener elements attached to said shelf border are constructed ofbutton snap connectors; and said fastener elements mounted to the insidewalls of said compartment are constructed of button snap connectors. 7.The insertable shelf and retaining apparatus of claim 1 wherein: anupright center partition, acting as a divider, running the length ofsaid shelf horizontally, is attached along its lower edge to the tophorizontal center of said shelf horizontally, and attached on onehorizontal end to the adjacent inside wall of said compartment, and onthe other horizontal end to said retaining wall of said shelf.
 8. Thepartition of claim 7 wherein: said partition is constructed of nylonmesh material.
 9. The partition of claim 7 wherein: said partition isconstructed of plastic material.
 10. The partition of claim 7 wherein:said partition is attached to said shelf and to said compartment bymeans of hook and loop material.
 11. The partition of claim 7 wherein:said partition is attached to said shelf and to said compartment bymeans of button snap connectors.
 12. The insertable shelf and retainingapparatus of claim 1 wherein; an additional partition is installed onthe top side of said shelf on the opposite horizontal end from saidretaining wall, running the width of the horizontal surface of saidshelf, and attached at its base to said shelf and at its ends to theadjacent inside walls of said compartment.
 13. The insertable shelf andretaining apparatus of claim 1 wherein; additional partitions areinstalled at various locations on top side of said shelf, running thewidth of the horizontal surface of the shelf, and attached at theirlower edges to said shelf and to the adjacent inside walls of saidcompartment.
 14. The insertable shelf and retaining apparatus of claim 1wherein; the means of the attachment of said shelf to said compartmentis provided by separate attachable flaps of predetermined width andlength, incorporating fastening elements along the length of said flaps,and attached between said fastening elements mounted to said shelfborder and the respective fastener elements mounted to said compartment,for means of attaching said shelf to various sizes of compartments. 15.The flaps of claim 14 wherein; said flaps are constructed of nylon meshmaterial.
 16. The flaps of claim 14 wherein; said flaps are constructedof plastic material.
 17. The flaps of claim 14 wherein; said fasteningelements of said flaps are constructed of hook-and-loop material. 18.The flaps of claim 14 wherein; said fastening elements of said flaps areconstructed of plastic hook latches.
 19. The flaps of claim 14 wherein;said fastening elements of said flaps are constructed of button snapconnectors.
 20. The insertable shelf and retaining apparatus of claim 1wherein; said shelf covers the entire opening of said compartment andsaid border is attached to the inside walls of said compartment on allsides; and said retaining wall is not formed by raising said shelf.